Career Education by stealth as a means of sowing different seeds than CV writing, interview practice and Skills for Jobs.

A lot of resources are being invested in the intentional tuition of “skills for jobs” and “careers”. Perhaps we need to consider a casual approach to career education, advice and guidance.

It was a recent visit to a film studio tour dedicated to a successful movie franchise that got me thinking about how this would make such a great careers day. Walking around between the sections of the studio, each dedicated to different aspects of movie-making: the props, artwork, design, mechanics. The distinction between visual effects (the ones done on a computer) and special effects (where things actually get blown up) and the amount of talent, skill and capability that goes into entertaining us humans.

It only takes about 10 minutes of sitting through the credits at the end of pretty much any blockbuster movie to learn that the entertainment industry has so many amazing opportunities for jobs and crafts that are nowhere near consideration for kids and teenagers these days.

Seize an opportunity to teach without teaching

This time of year, as the school year draws to a close and teachers up and down the country are looking for things to do with kids who are through with learning for the year, go out and about exploring.

A tour such as this, which offers a day full of movie-making magic, also offers an opportunity to explore careers by stealth: show kids and teenagers that being part of the magic extends beyond the work down around the cameras.

By exploring the fact that “ordinary” jobs can be used in “extraordinary” context not only opens their mind to existing opportunities within the “extraordinary”, but will probably plant the seed in the minds of the more entrepreneurial ones to create new “extraordinary” contexts for “ordinary” jobs.

Sowing the seeds of STEM

To be even bolder, using the settings of entertainment production can plant more seeds for STEM subjects: no longer are engineers confined to the spaces of designing dull stuff, no matter how useful or important.

Here is an opportunity to be a glamorous engineer: design animatronic bits and bobs that move and make noises and are often just as big a star as the people in the movie. Or you can be a work with glitzy Chemistry, calculating what components go in where to make a car explosion look just the way the director wants it. How about dazzling safety advisor (with a background in Physics and Maths) that helps make sure that when your favourite movie star is plunged from the ceiling of the set, their fall is secured by the right cables in the right places?

Using opportunities like these can turning them around can open up the eyes of children to opportunities they are not even aware of. After all, isn’t that what education is all about?

Want to learn about other ways to do career education by stealth? Contact us.